Waning Experience

A Special CrazyComposer Editorial

The news that yet another talented and highly experienced employee associated with the (dare I say “now defunct”?) Psychiatric Rehabilitation Program at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre had been left with no alternative but to leave their place of employment came as little surprise, though it grieved me deeply for the loss that it represented. When I initially learned that the PSR program had been slated for the chopping block I knew it would be inevitable that many talented individuals would ultimately be leaving the hospital. Within a few weeks one of the most experienced psychiatric nurses decided to take the option of early retirement rather than have to endure any more mistreatment at the hands of the administration. Others followed shortly thereafter. Now a talented Occupational Therapist is joining their ranks and she will be followed by a Psychologist and … well, how many more will there be?

The philosophy that attrition is the better part of valour has become entrenched in the warped economic plans of this feckless board of directors, or so it would seem, and it is far easier on an administrator’s conscience, where one exists, when they are able to manipulate their employees into leaving – seemingly on their own volition – rather than having to hand them their pink slips in person. Of course, this hardly addresses the true cost of this situation. While the PSR program was put on the chopping block in an effort to save money in our budget-strapped health care system, it would seem as though there hasn’t been a single attempt to analyse the ramifications of the loss of so many specialised mental health care workers.

This ongoing drama made me recall a memory from my childhood, growing up in Sudbury, Ontario; on a warm summer’s day (yes, they happened) I was sitting in a playground at the end of the street we lived on, watching some older boys playing on the monkey bars, doing things that I could not do because I was too small. To be older, to have more experience, to have more … what was it that came with age, I wondered, height … intelligence … so many things that might come in handy. As I rode my bike home the thoughts that went through my head were quite simple: being young was fine, but I now knew that there was nothing to fear from growing older; with age came all of the things that made life worth living. After all, you can only play in a sandbox for so long before it begins to chafe.

What the administration at the ROMHC has failed to recognize is that they are driving away decades of accumulated experience and wisdom that cannot be replaced by five times the number of newly minted graduates – if the vacated positions are ever refilled (which is doubtful). When a psychologist with nearly 25 years experience leaves the hospital at the end of this month – for the simple reason that rehabilitation (preventative therapy!) is not a priority of our health care system – a resource that has been cultivated over a period of a quarter century will be lost to the patients and any staff that may want to call upon his considered experience and wisdom. How does this serve the community?

The loss of an Occupational Therapist with several years experience here in Ottawa, as well as a number of years in mental health care treatment centres in Toronto is another irrevocable loss of experience, wisdom, and tremendous humanity. There is no new graduate OT that can draw upon the wealth of lifetime experiences that have now been consigned to the trash heap by the visionless administration, steering this hospital like the Titanic – directly on course for the iceberg that would send it to the bottom of the ocean.

There is no value in a shiny new building if it is inhabited by shadows and incompetents; driving out the best resources you have – your employees – is not how to lay a solid foundation for any organization, let alone one that purports to serve the needs of the community. This new building, now more than a year old and still unfinished, is suffering from the deficiencies perpetrated by those whose plans are now tearing apart the heart of what the ROH represented: providing patients with the tools for recovery.

It seems an ironic note that in re-branding the Royal Ottawa Hospital the choice should fall to: ROMHC, standing for Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre: What word is missing? Perhaps a better acronym should have been ROMHCC, for Royal Ottawa Mental Health Care Centre: You see, that is the real problem here, they have taken the Care out of the Royal – they may not care, others still do. We must stop the drain of talented, experienced individuals before it is too late.

CrazyComposer, out.

First Post - Welcome

Welcome to my newest blog, a blog created out of an urgent need for a dying thing: psychiatric rehabilitation in the city of Ottawa. This blog shall be dedicated entirely to issues surrounding mental health and, in particular, to the issues of "Psych Rehab", which is a short way of saying psychiatric rehabilitation.

Psych Rehab is an important element in the health care hierarchy for the simple reason that it treats mental illnesses conjunctively with medications, using groups, therapists and other diverse treatment plans in combination as a way to help an individual living with a mental illness take control over their treatment and become a partner in their care. Psych Rehab saves the economy money by preventing expensive hospital stays, allowing costly beds to be kept for those in extreme crisis while those who are able to manage their illnesses in other ways try to, with the support of those trained in the Psych Rehab model.

Most of all, Psych Rehab is a tool that offers mental health consumers a choice when it comes to their treatment: instead of relying entirely upon the treatment protocols prescribed by a physician it is possible for an individual to take personal responsibility for their course of treatment, and for the direction of their recovery, by using the tools provided by an effective Psych Rehab program.

This blog shall deal extensively with the tools of psychiatric rehabilitation, symptom self-management, goal-setting, and all of the other things that go into the "big picture" of Psych Rehab, tools that anyone with a mental illness - or anyone who knows someone with a mental illness - can use to recognize warning signs and other clarion calls for help.

We are always told that "Cancer can be beaten", and we must believe this to be true - but are we ever told that "mental illnesses" can be beaten with the same vehemence? There are mental health care practitioners in the field today who do hold this position, who advocate that these illnesses can be "lived with", "managed" and "coped with" in ways that allow an individual to experience as much of a "normal" life as anyone else, quite often without anyone even knowing of the presence of an illness without the disclosure from the individual themselves.

This site is dedicated to all who struggle to live with illnesses that are misunderstood, misrepresented and maligned by the press on a regular basis; their ongoing vilification of individuals with mental illnesses perpetuates the stigma surrounding the disease, making it difficult - in this day and age - for people to feel comfortable to seek treatment because they may be criticized by the likes of a movie star who doesn't "believe" in psychiatry.

Psychiatric Rehabilitation 4 You shall be a place to come for links to mental health sites, psych rehab resources and other tools for those seeking that first step (or beyond) down the road towards recovery. It will also be a place to share stories of inspiration, to encourage others in their walk. Please, if you have something to contribute, send it in and I shall consider posting it as soon as possible.

In closing, this site is also dedicated to my dear friend - an Angel - who felt the burdens of that dark beast overwhelm her last year. Her loss is still felt, the pain of her passing still present.

Remember: Mental Illnesses Can be Beaten.